In another sign that retail companies are re-evaluating the way they pay employees, TJX Cos. – the parent company of stores like T.J. Maxx, Marshalls and HomeGoods – announced it intends to increase hourly wages for worker starting this year. [More]

Whenever I hear a plaintive voice calling to me from nowhere, I always just assume it’s ghosts. It’s a good thing I’m not a worker at Marshalls, where a man who was trapped inside the wall for up to three days was finally rescued after employees heard some odd noises. This, after the man apparently tried passing notes to the outside about his predicament. [More]

David noticed something strange about the purportedly new, sealed DVD that he bought at closeout chain Marshalls. He writes that when he unsealed and opened the case, the DVD inside formerly belonged to…Redbox?! [More]

Albert Gonzalez, a 28-year-old from Miami who was arrested last year and charged with leading “a worldwide ring that stole more than 40 million credit and debit card numbers from major retail chains,” plead guilty today as part of a plea bargain. He faces up to 25 years in prison.

Christopher Soghoian over at Cnet is reporting that Turkish police may have used violence to get the encryption keys of one of primary ringleaders in the TJ Maxx credit card theft investigation. The suspect, Maksym Yastremskiy, is apparently a “major figure in the international sale of stolen credit card information.”

A Cleveland paramedic was arrested last week after being caught on video using credit cards she had stolen from an 87-year-old patient, according to The Plain Dealer. Tiffany Forte, age 32, has been working for the Cleveland Emergency Medical Services for the last seven years. A police statement says she was seen on video surveillance at Target and Marshalls racking up $1000 worth of charges while wearing her EMS t-shirt. Details, inside…

Have you ever heard a store advertising stuff they don’t sell over the PA? Reader Anne describes some weirdness she encountered at Marshalls:

I just returned from a trip to Marshalls where I was subjected to an ad for Proactiv over the PA system. It was really horrendous and must be addressed! The worst part is that I’m pretty sure they don’t even sell Proactiv at Marshalls, so it’s not like a blue light special informing us shoppers of a Proactive special in aisle 12.

Mouseprint.org has read the fine print and they say you’re probably out of luck when it comes to the TJ Maxx Settlement:

So, it is primarily shoppers who returned goods without a receipt during the relevant period who qualify for that part of the settlement. That amounts to some 455,000 people, a mere 1% of the total number possibly affected. These people have already received a direct notification of the breach from TJX, and will also be entitled to other compensation if they experienced actual losses.

The announcement did not specify the settlement cost, but noted that its estimated costs were included in a $107 million reserve included in its second-quarter report for fiscal 2008 and its estimate of $21 million in costs expected in fiscal 2009. The $107 million figure includes costs from other lawsuits not included in the customer class actions, the Framingham-based company said.

Stolen TJX data has been linked to 6 arrests in the Miami area. According to the AP, the ID thieves exploited a Walmart gift card loophole that allowed them to buy multiple $400 gift cards without showing ID, which they would then redeem or sell.

Retailers are getting stricter with their return policies this year. If you’re not hot about the Marshmallow Shooter or Toshiba SD-4990 DVD Player grams got you, keep the receipt and don’t take it out of the package. Here’s the return policies of some of the major retailers. — BEN POPKEN